I did a forum search but couldn't find very much on this herb. I've just started to use it in tea form as a replacement for coffee. Hopefully the reduction in caffeine will do my insulin sensitivity some good. It's too early to gauge the results, but in the meantime I have a couple of questions:

DonM, yerba mate is a very nice alternative for those trying to wean themselves off of caffeine. Caffeine is one of xanthines in the larger trimethlxanthine family. The xanthines have a similar chemistry/structure but each has its own unique set of properties and widely varying pharmacological properties.

Others xanthines are theophylline and theobromine, mateine (found in yerba mate), guaraneine (found in guarna). There is only one effect that seems to be shared by all; smooth muscle relaxation.

Mateine, like other xanthines, stimulates the central nervous system, but is not habituating or addicting. Likewise, unlike caffeine, it induces BETTER, not worse, sleep.

It is a mild diuretic, as are many of the xanthines. It relaxes peripheral blood vessels, thereby reducing blood pressure, without the strong effect on the medulla and heart exhibited by some of the other xanthines.

It improves psychomotor performance without the typical xanthine-induced depressant after effects.

While mateine has a chemical constituency similar to caffeine, the molecular binding is different, and it is believed to IMPROVE insulin sensitivity (as does green tea). You will find it in a number of diet/thermogenic/insulin-sensitivity-enhancing formulas. Since mateine seems to enhance insulin sensitivity, I would consider it to be ANTI-lipogenic. I don't know about appetite suppression, though.

After testing, researchers have concluded that even if there were caffeine in mate, the amount would be so tiny that it would take 100 tea bags of mate in a six ounce cup of water to equal the caffeine in a six ounce serving of regular coffee.

Interesting fact I picked up along the way, but caffeine suppresses insulin sensitivity by 15%. That being the case, would anyone like to join me in a cup of yerba mate? (grin)

Yerba Mate is a beautiful alternative to coffe. I love it. It does not contain caffine. It contains many healthful proporties that does me a world of good. The most potent version I have found is the guayaki brand. I bought a pound of it. It takes a week to get it. I highly, highly recommend this beverage. I order it from www.guayaki.com. They also have a very good definition of its properties. Go there at least for info. Give is a shot, I think you will find it wonderful. It's is also a mild fat burner....CHEERS!

Akheron, mostly I'm good at analyzing and condensing things. I carry SOME of it in my head, but I have a great library (we're talking recovering book-aholic) and find the 'Net to be a great resource for rounding out my other resources.

Check out http://www.ma-tea.com/ I order my mate from them. They have the best prices that I have been able to find and the widest variety, they don't try to rape you on shipping either. There's alot of info on Yerba mate too. I like to drink it the traditional way from a gourd, I have tried several brands and they actually have quite distinctively different tastes. Some are very bitter, others are quite smooth. I like Rosamonte and Taragui, Taragui Serranas has peppermint leaves mixed in and is probably my favorite. Yerba Mate hasn't competely replaced coffee for me because I still crave a cup of the dark stuff now and again, but it definitely got me out of the 'pot a day' habit.

Whetu, I tried yerba mate before, a while back. But based on my research, I went out and bought some more this evening. A friend of mine, a BB type, says it give you a heckuva kick, but that it's different from coffee. At this point, I'm ditching my preworkout caffeine pills and java and going to give the YM a run for the money.

I have to do some more checking, but I hope YM mobilizes fatty acids like caffeine does, one of the reasons I always took in some coffee before cardio, the CNS "kick" being the other reason.

I brewed some yerba mate (2 cups of hot, not boiling, water poured over 2 heaping teaspoons of YM leaves). From there I poured it over ice, added Splenda to taste and guzzled it down. It was quite tasty, quite the pleasant beverage. And did I get a kick? Heck, yeah! I'm ready for my cardio!!!

Jacked, but no jitters. Really cool.

For those of you trying to optimize insulin sensitivity or for those who are sensitive to caffeine but still need some kind of CNS kick, I'd strongly recommend the YM.

TT, I forgot to mention how YM makes me feel in my last post. It isn't a jittery jacked feeling but it is definitely a strong energized feeling, the cool part is that your muscles are still relaxed and fully under your mental control and your mind is calm, hence no jitters. One day I drank about 8 cups of hot water, steeped in about 1 cup of YM and I felt like I had a mild buzz from it and my energy levels were off the charts, yet still calm and collected. Good stuff! If you find out any more info about the effects of mateine and the chemistry of YM let me know.

Oh yah, and just so you know, Rosamonte has higher levels of caffeine than the other types of mate but I don't know how much more. All other Mate's contain very low trace amounts of caffeine and I am sure that Rosamonte has low levels as well but did test a little higher, can't find the actual results though.

Hey TT, which brand do you buy? I just placed an order at ma-tea for 1.1 lbs of Taragui Sarranas, Taragui Citrus, and Manzana Union con palos, and a new hand crafted gourd. I haven't tried the citrus or the con palos yet, I am slowly working my way through all the diffrerent kinds at ma-tea, pretty interesting.